Kliptown Youth Program keeps growing
Kliptown Youth Program (KYP) has been servicing the community for the last 15 years and they are still going strong.
Kliptown Youth Program (KYP) has been servicing the community for the last 15 years and they are still going strong.
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With Thulani Madondo as the Executive Director and a KFC Add Hope beneficiary partner, KYP caters to 902 children from areas such as Kliptown, Dlamini, Klipspruit, and Pimville.
Children who are part of the programme are between the ages of seven and 20 years old.
Madondo believes that youth development is still vital for children in townships.
According to information by the executive director, in the community, three out of four adults are said to be unemployed.
High rate of teenage pregnancy, HIV/Aids, substance abuse and food insecurity are just a few of the challenges faced by the community.
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“Added to this are the many barriers to education, such as the cost of school fees, uniforms, supplies and underperforming schools all of which can make it that much harder for many children to see a brighter future for themselves.
“With no schools in the area, children also often walk between 30 – 40 minutes to the next town.
“However, despite these great challenges, the community of Kliptown has an incredibly strong spirit with an inspiring sense of culture and hope.
They recognise through learning, collaboration, and development. It’s the only way we can empower the next generation of youth,” said Madondo.
KYP understands the importance of nutrition and how difficult it can be for children to learn when they are hungry and this is why the organisation provides two meals a day to its beneficiaries.
“This levels the playing field for them against their counterparts who come from more privileged backgrounds,” added Madondo.
The organisation has also partnered with KFC Add Hope who donates 400 meals daily to their programme. Since opening its doors back in 2007, KPY has offered tutoring support for 3292 children all the way from Grade 1 through 12.
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“Through our programme we have seen a pass rate of 80% with matric students from Kliptown.
“Today we not only offer tutoring services, but food programmes, online learning access, psychological support, vocational training and an arts and culture programme.
“We also have 50 university graduates under our belt who are doing great things and employ 75 young people in the community,” shared Madondo.
Even though the organisation is still going strong, they still face challenges because of the need for their programme in the community.
KYP cannot accommodate more children due to funding purposes but they are hoping to one day reach more children in the community.
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Madondo also shared that they hope to expand on their network in South Africa so that more funding can come from local corporates and foundations as majority of KYP’s funding currently comes from outside of the country.
“We continue to appreciate organisations such as KFC Add Hope and many others who continuously support our work and mission,” concluded Madondo.
And not forgetting about Youth Day, to commemorate the day, KYP had a ‘Clean Kliptown Community Campaign’. You can follow Kliptown Youth Program (KYP) on Facebook for more.
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